Kids
by SheWhoDreamsInsteadOfSleeps
Summary: Nico couldn't help but wonder what the hell happened to his friends, whom he use to fight monsters and drink and act irresponsible with, went to. Then he remembered, kids. They do stuff to you.


**Kind of a random one shot.**

**This is Nico, and mentions of the other's, grown up. As you can tell, by the name, they have kids.**

**Enjoy! Hope it's good.**

**Kids  
Or,  
Life of Nico Later On, At Least In My Mind**

**Disclaimer: Rick Riordan? No... I'm pretty sure I'm a girl drinking a mix of Pepsi and Orange soda, and half watching Kronk's New Groove. Oh yeah. Not Rick.**

* * *

They were just kids, those two. Foolish kids, thinking they'd be able to take on the world. Be different.

Well, maybe not exactly kids. Nico had just turned nineteen, though he looked around twenty, maybe twenty one-he used that to his advantage, looking drinking age-and Brian _was_ twenty one.

And they both were in no way kids. Nico, he's seen things. Bad things. Things that defined bad. Been to hell and back-literally.

Brian, now, he hasn't had the best life. He's never had anything, and so he's never lost anything.

He's different-for a mortal. He'd never confront you about lying, even if he knows that you are. And he'll never say he doesn't believe what you say, even though he never does, whether it's true or not. He doesn't judge. He doesn't have the answers. He doesn't know whether or not he's lonely, being alone all his life. He's just… There.

He's not much like Nico. And yet, they're very much alike. It annoys Brian when someone acts as if something little is such a big deal, at least when the person won't stop talking about it.

Nico finds it amusing when mortals talk about their affairs, such little things compared to things he's seen. But no. He doesn't feel much pity, if any at all.

Nico is polite yet rude, cold yet kind, he doesn't want a family, and yet he'd protect his with his life, and he's usually alone and likes it.

Brian is polite, funny, he has friends he'd consider close, but he doesn't have much of a connection to people, even those he loves. He doesn't care either way-alone or with people. Because you can still be lonely with people right around you.

But they do have one thing in common.

Their love of Alcohol.

I mean, it's alcohol. A beautiful invention. There are who knows how many types of alcohol, and how amazing it is. It makes you forget things. Makes you not be able to think, much. Not be able to… remember.

And how it eats at your liver and your life, but Nico and Brian aren't exactly looking forward to a long life.

So. Anyways. There's one real thing in common. It's also the reason that they met.

And just let me say, thank gods for verging-on alcoholics.

Or, hell, you could consider them alcoholics. They've made it that far.

And, while on the outside they're adults, with jobs and a house and a rent and taxes and bills and responsibilities and a past, on the inside they're just kids. And they will always be young, wandering around and lost in their own selves, trapped in their pasts, until they've found a future.

Yup. Super mega cheesy, but true.

And these two kids met, one night-early early morning-at a bar, both with one of their favorite things in the worlds in their hands, alcohol.

They were drunk. On that verge of going crazy and not remembering anything, but really just very tipsy and unsure of what's going on, thoughts fuzzy and not complete, having to catch themselves from falling once and then.

It started with Brian. They were both holding a drink, and bumped into each other on their way-well, they weren't entirely sure where they were going, just that they were no longer going.

Brian-tipping back and forth and seeming to not be able to concentrate, like Nico-looked at him and told him he was cute.

Nico told him he should get his eyes checked.

Brian says maybe he should. Then asks why he's here alone.

Nico tries to ask him, how does he know he's not walking to his friends right now. He can tell it didn't come out right, but Brian understands drunk language just fine.

Brian says, 'cause it's four in the morning and you're drunk.

Your drunk. He shot back.

Brian gave a laugh, but it was strange. Maybe he really was drunk.

Your cute.

Your cute. Nico shot back, glaring.

And now, they're not entirely sure what happened after that, but when Nico woke up, he was on his couch in his apartment and he had a phone number on his hand.

And, oh gods, when he remembered all that he could remember, he felt giddy. He felt scared. He felt excited. He felt like a kid.

* * *

Kids. They were foolish. Stubborn. Dumb. Annoying. Useless. Expensive and honestly, a bunch of pains in the ass.

And they both knew it. And yet, kids is exactly what Brian wants.

They aren't married. They live together. And that's even too much for Nico. Brian, he too wasn't much of the relationship kind of guy. They both weren't in to that touchy-touchy-ness and trusting one another and being in love and all that crap.

But, in a weird way, Brian was braver than Nico. I mean, sure, he totally coward in a corner when a harmless little monster cornered them, but with things like this. He steps up.

Nico's been fine with that. Move in. Pay less for rent, not have to drive or walk some blocks every time he wanted to see his boyfriend, and maybe, just maybe, he'd convince Brian that moving in was enough.

And he thought he had. There was no more talk about marriage. They called, on occasion, each other partner, even.

But that didn't mean, in any way on heaven and Earth, that he was ready for kids.

He'd never be. Because he's never, and never will, wanted kids.

Brian reminded him how he was with Percy and Annabeth's kids. Their five year old daughter and their two year old son, both of whom Nico has had to babysit on occasion, liked the man. Uncle Nico, they'd call him. Well, Em could say his name, The youngest kind of… Said something with the same tones as "uncle Nico". They just assumed.

And sure, he likes the kids, maybe loves in that they're-the-daughter-and-son-of-my-cousin/best-fri end-and-another-best-friend-technically-related-to -me-and-I've-known-them-since-they-were-born, kind of way.

But he doesn't want his own. He can't have one of his own. He can barely pick up Luke, the youngest of the two, right. Back when Em was just a little girl, he took forever to just be able to pick her up, he had no idea what to do.

Besides. Nico's the son of the god of Death, of the Underworld. Unless he's careful, or just in a little-bit-better-than-okay mood, plants die around him. People are scared of him. Animals hate him. Even monsters fear him. Kids, they don't like him. It's a surprise that all of his friends' kids' even like him. And that's probably because they grew up with him around and are related to him, maybe because he's gotten better at controlling his son of Hades thing.

But his own kids…

He could never do it. And yet, the idea made him happy. Maybe even a little excited. Having a little thing of his own, to share with Brian, Nico doesn't know how he and Brian would get kids, but whether it's adoption or getting an egg donor, it would be theirs.

Brian would have a less of a chance of leaving Nico if they had kids together.

And there it is. As Nico lies awake in bed, staring at the ceiling as he has for the past hours, with Brian besides him already far into sleep, the thought he's been holding back and yet that's been there the whole time rings loud in his mind. He wouldn't leave.

Maybe he would. There's still a chance. Brian said he wouldn't, ever, but how does he know? How do you ever know if you're going to decide to leave? People who get married, they don't do it with the intention of eventually breaking up. Not when it's true. You do it to prove to everyone, to shove it in their face that you're in love, that you have everything, showing off and boasting by doing nothing more then wearing a ring.

But, maybe twenty years later, things can change. You fall out of love. You fall in love with someone else, you get bored, decided to try other things-To many ways to leave someone. To leave one another.

Nico couldn't take that. Finding someone that, even after all this time, he's still learning to trust, leaves him. Brian knows so much about Nico… He can't see him telling anyone anything about Nico that he told in confidence, but he also couldn't see Brian leaving him. So, if one thing happened, why couldn't the next…

But, kids. Kids. Annoying, expensive, noisy, stinky things. Our future, the love of so many parents lives. A big, fat, fucking deal.

He's heard that parents get closer when you have kids. You're more reluctant to divorce when you have kids that'll suffer to.

And, sure, Nico and Brian weren't married, and they probably never will be-That's one too many steps for Nico-But they are together. For who knows how much longer, and who knows if one day they'll get bored of each other, one day they'll look at someone and think of them like they think of each other now, if they'll fall in love with someone else or just decide this was wrong from the beginning, if it starts tomorrow or in twenty years, Nico wants as much time as he can get.

He rolled over and leaned into Brian, taking in his warmth and listening to his steady breathing, as he closed his eyes and let sleep acomb him, he thought, Maybe a kid or two will be fun.

* * *

"How do I-This doesn't even make-EERG!" Nico grinded his teeth, and looked up, glaring.

He shoved his phone in the direction of his daughter, who was leaning against the counter in their kitchen with quite a _not amused_ look on her face.

"Do it for me."

"Seriously, Nico? It's so easy. You press buttons, and letters appear, then you put more letters, which makes something called words-"

"Bi." He interrupted her. He shoved the phone closer to her, she just smirked and raised an eyebrow, "Text your father for me."

The young teen feigned hesitations. She cautiously raised an eyebrow.

"What are you trying to tell him…"

"That we're ordering pizza tonight."

His daughter stopped. "Really?" She tried to hide the excitement in her voice. I mean, seriously, when do they ever get to eat pizza? And ordered out to!

"Yes, there's nothing in the fridge-And I sure as hell don't want to cook, plus Brian will take too long to get home if he can cook, which he won't want to-"

"I can cook!" His daughter said defensively.

"...You'd rather go to the grocery store, find ingredients for something, or search our practically empty pantry, then cook, when you can just have ordered out pizza?"

"... Okay, give." She took the cell phone.

* * *

What kind of parent enjoys his own daughter being scared?

But, c'mon, her hugging him tightly because all the Halloween decorations at the Party store scared her, adorable.

Nico turned, carefully so not to bother Bianca, to find his son. Who was staring at a decoration, a blown up thing of a witch, it looks, going up and down a-was that a chimney?

"He's still staring?" Nico heard Brian ask behind him.

"Should we be worried?" Nico turned to the other man.

"...Nah. At least he's not running around and destroying the place."

"True." Nico shifted on his feet. "Are we going to get them costumes or what?"

"Costumes? Why? Do you want to follow them around for a few hours, after fitting them into things they'll hate, then chase after 'em when they're sugar high?"

"No." Brian nodded. 'Nough said.

The costume store wasn't very crowded, or loud, which was great with their two kids.

Brian and Nico aren't the kind of parents to get their kids all dressed up in cute costumes, then go trick or treating. The main reason they were even here was because they had nothing better to do, their apartment is a mess and they don't feel like cleaning, and their friends had come with their kids.

They watched as Percy dashed past them, in close pursuit with his son. The three year old has a destiny in track, honestly.

Annabeth and Piper were standing near by, staring at costumes. They were both standing with their arms crossed, the brows furrowed and their conversation serious. They were trying to choose between a pumpkin costume, and a bumble bee costume.

Nico couldn't help but wonder what the hell happened to his friends, whom he use to fight monsters and drink and act irresponsible with, went to.

Then his son screamed and ran into Brian's arms, and he remembered.

They were parents. Just like every other parent. Don't mind all the trouble they've had in the past. Their inheritance or the things they've gone through. None of that matters, now.

Kids. They do stuff to you.


End file.
